This reading really started me thinking, I don’t know if I just never really thought about how brands started or if I had and just never made the connection between the start of small brands and the large corporate brands. Brands started as a way to provide a guarantee of reliability and quality to the consumer. Brands used to make the owners more accountable for the quality of their products.
Today I think that brands are more about trying to sell a way of life or a life style to the consumer, rather then reliability and quality. If a brand can make people think that their products are better because of the lifestyle they represent then they can charge more for the product even if it is not better. This new “inner truth” that companies are now using to connect their companies with the consumers seems like a way to almost make the company less accountable for their practices.
I believe that if they can paint a picture for the consumer about what the underling foundation of the brand is then they can cover up or hide what their actual business practices are.
Naomi Klein criticized Benetton for the way they promote their brand by using “truth instead of advertising”. Even if they are not practicing what they preach at least they are making people aware of issues that they may not otherwise be aware of. If this sells the product then all the better, because then they will continue to use this way of advertising and continue to bring social issues to light for many people.
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